


Watching You Fall in love

by annajustice



Series: They're Good Together [4]
Category: Chicago PD (TV)
Genre: Angst, Confessions, F/M, Flashbacks, Fluff and Angst, Friends to Lovers, Friendship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-06
Updated: 2020-10-06
Packaged: 2021-03-07 16:15:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,167
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26860492
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/annajustice/pseuds/annajustice
Summary: With the help of Vanessa and Will, Hailey and Jay relive the last three years of their partnership and come to the same life-altering conclusion.
Relationships: Jay Halstead & Will Halstead, Jay Halstead/Hailey Upton, Vanessa Rojas & Hailey Upton
Series: They're Good Together [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2138988
Comments: 5
Kudos: 86





	Watching You Fall in love

Hailey slammed the door to her apartment shut and dropped her bag down next to it. Sighing, she made her way to the kitchen where her roommate Vanessa was waiting on a bar stool. “I thought you had plans with Halstead?” She asked, Hailey shrugged, pouring herself a glass of whiskey before settling in next to Vanessa.

“Nope, I told him I’d be at Molly’s but he never showed.” She takes a drink before slamming her glass down on the counter, more than a little upset that Jay ditched their “thing that works.”

Vanessa looks her up and down, it hadn’t been that long since she called Hailey out about her feelings for the detective, but she was tempted to bring it up again. Vanessa hadn’t been a part of intelligence for long, but in her time there she and Hailey had grown close. Naturally they would, they live together. But even before she knew Hailey she assumed that her and Jay had something going on, even if it was unspoken. She would catch him sneaking glances at her across the bullpen, she saw Hailey’s smile get wider when he spoke to her. She knew he had feelings for her, it was a topic she had discussed with Kevin several times, but it seemed like the two people that needed to see it most couldn’t.

Vanessa sighed, “He’s probably tired, it’s been a tough few days.” She assures her. 

“I know, he can do whatever he wants.” Hailey says a little too aggressively. “He’s just never not showed up. He usually texts me or calls.” Vanessa notices Hailey’s face fall.  _ This is getting ridiculous.  _ There had to be something she could do, Hailey couldn’t sit on her feelings anymore. She needed to tell him. 

“When did you know you loved him?” Vanessa asks, Hailey is taken aback. 

She nervously laughs, “I don’t understand…”

Vanessa turns to face her. “I want to hear all of it, I haven’t been here that long, I want to know everything.” She rests her hand on Hailey’s. “Plus, maybe you’ll have some sort of passionate breakthrough and tell him.”

Hailey rolls her eyes at Vanessa’s overdramtic expression. “Okay.” 

She thinks back to the first time she ever looked at Jay as more than a partner. 

_ “It’s good to see you again Roni.” Hailey said before climbing back into her car. The whole situation was surreal. When she heard that Booth got out she was furious, she risked everything to put him away. How could they let someone so dangerous back on the streets?  _

_ The team had decided it was best course of action to dust off her old cover, so here she was, pretending to be Kelly all over again, but this time without Garrett. It had been several years since he disappeared, or as Hailey knew, since he had been murdered. She would be damned if he got away again, this time he was going down for good, no matter what the cost. _

_ The next day, Hailey bounds into the surveillance room after getting a 9-1-1 text from Jay. “Hey, I got here as fast as I could. What’s the emergency? Are you okay?” She glanced down at the files he had in front of him, taking a sharp breath at the sight. _

_ “This.” He says, pulling out several photos of a beaten and bruised Hailey. “Time stamp is December 31st.” He slams one more down and looks at her. “New Years Eve.” Hailey stands there frozen, the images causing a flood of memories to rush back. “What the hell happened?” Hailey takes a long look at the forward facing photo before turning to leave the room. “Hailey…” Jay says chasing after her. “What are you doing? We’ve got to talk about this.” Hailey grimaces at the intensity in his voice, knowing she won’t be able to escape this conversation.  _

_ “You called Rafferty behind my back.” She snaps. _

_ “You know you didn’t really give me a choice. Look I get that you hate Booth and you want to nail his ass but, this...this is too dangerous.” Hailey is slightly taken aback by his concern, but quickly recovers.  _

_ “It’s part of the job.” _

_ “Just tell me everything.” He said, she could tell he was being sincere, it was almost like he was pleading with her. “I wanna help, okay? I promise.” _

_ Hailey takes a deep breath, her eyes daring to lift from the floor to his. “Booth just got back from St. Louis. He was there talking to a major player the feds were trying to ID, so on New Years Eve, there was a party.” Hailey talked slowly, mustering all the strength she could to tell the story of one of the worst nights of her life. “I got him alone, he was drunk. I thought I could get a name, he had other things in mind.” She shook her head, feeling Jay’s gaze burn a hold in it.  _

_ “Did he?”  _

_ “No.” She said quickly. “I got away, Garrett got me to the hospital.”  _

_ Jay was adamant that she had to tell Voight, going as far as to bring up when she pulled him out of a similarly sketchy situation. She convinced him to let her put a camera in Booth’s office and then they could go from there. She nudged his arms before turning to finally leave the room. Not able to handle his pleading eyes any longer.  _

_ Later that night, Hailey found herself waiting outside after Booth took Jay in alone. She had an awful feeling. It would be soe easy for him to take out Jay just like he did Garrett. Thankfully, Jay made it out alive, but he was even angrier than before.  _

_ Jay showing up at Booth’s warehouse was definitely not part of Hailey’s plan, but once again she found herself excited about how much he cared for her. Even though he was definitely pissed at her for going rouge, she knew he had her back.  _

_ After a screaming match in her UC apartment, Hailey convinced Jay to help her continue the deal. She needed to put him down, she had to, for Garrett. She knew Jay was worried, he had just said that he couldn’t trust her. That stung more than she would like to admit, but she knew that it was the stress of the day. She trusted Jay with her life, hearing him say that he didn’t know if he could trust her was a wake up call. She needed to end this. Now. _

_ When she and Jay rolled up to the meet, everything happened so fast. All the sudden, Booth had her pinned against his car with the excuse of “searching” her. Her mind flashed back to that New Years Eve so long ago, when she found herself in this very same position, only then, Garrett got himself killed by trying to save her. As Jay took a step forward, she was sure that he was fated for the same thing. “Come on man, you don’t gotta do it like that.” he said. She wished that she could tell him to stop, but she was too distracted, too scared to look away from the car door.  _

_ All the sudden, Tyler screamed gun and Jay suddenly had one pointed at him. Hailey wrestled Booth’s from him and shot Tyler fatally, feeling a little remorse. He was only a kid, but it was Jay’s life on the line. Hailey chased Booth to the stairwell where he slammed her into the hard metal railing, and into one wall, and then into another. Using all of her strength (and adrenaline) Hailey got the upper hand and threw Booth to the ground. In the heat of the moment she grabbed his gun, aiming at his head. “Admit you killed Garrett.” _

_ Booth cackled, “You’ll never find him.” _

_ Hailey took in hard breaths, trying to talk herself out of what she was about to do. “Hailey.” She felt Jay’s presence behind her. “Hailey, Hailey...he wins if you do this…” He placed a hand softly on her shoulder, trying to calm her. “Please, Hailey please, this is not the way. You gotta trust me.” _

_ Hailey forced Booth up before kicking him in the head, knocking him out cold. She walked away, letting Jay handle it from there.  _

_ That night there was a knock on her door, she wasn’t surprised to find Jay on the other side. Even after she told him she wanted to be alone, he waltzed and asked her to pour me a drink. She smiled before following him to her kitchen, where she did indeed pour him a drink. She felt his gaze on her, making her even more aware of her shitty appearance. “It’s over Hailey, you got him.”  _

_ “Yeah I know,” She sighs, “It just doesn’t feel as good as I thought it would.” She moves them to the couch. “Stirred up too many ghosts you know?” Hailey confessed what really happened, that Garrett was the one to pull Booth off her. She confided in Jay like she never had with anyone else.  _

_ “You loved him?” He asks. _

_ She avoids the question, “Anyway, thanks for coming by, but honestly I’m fine.” Hailey knew she wasn’t fine, she knew that Jay knew she wasn’t fine. Which is exactly why they sat there in silence, his presence being all she needed.  _

Hailey is pulled back to reality by Vanessa clearing her throat. “Hello? I’m listening.”

Hailey smiles before sighing. “About a year after I transfered into Intelligence, this guy from an old case I had closed got released. I was a mess, I went back undercover, but I was too emotional to make the right calls. Jay saved my life, he stopped me from killing him, from getting myself killed.” Vanessa nods. “He was all over me about it being too dangerous, I guess I realize now how right he was.” Hailey shakes her head, “He ditched Molly’s to come comfort me. Platt was even buying everyone shots that night.”

Vanessa’s eyes widened, “Oh wow.” 

“I know,” Hailey laughed. “Things changed after that, I can’t really explain it.” 

“Then keep going…” Vanessa urged her.

Hailey nodded, “Okay,” before taking another swig of her drink. 

_ Jay’s dad died in the apartment fire, and no matter what he said, she knew he wasn’t handling it well. Hailey watched him follow Voight into the interrogation room with steam coming out of his ears. She understood the pain of having a shitty father as much as Jay did, only he didn’t know that. She knew what it felt like to love someone even when you wanted to hate him, and Jay was throwing all the “hate” he had for his father into the case that killed him.  _

_ Hailey admired Jay for always being the first one through the door, for being able to make the tough decisions. But when he suggested bringing in Mendoza’s completely innocent son in order to flip him, she was shocked. “It’s too risky. If we get Juan involved, he’s actually involved and then the cartel starts gunning for him too.” Hailey says, Adam backing her up. _

_ Jay lost it after that, saying that it was the only thing they have to go on. Hailey knew he was hurting, but having him take it out on her wasn’t very fun. “Five other innocent people died because of this guys not so innocent brother and father. So I’m sorry that my heart doesn’t bleed like yours.” He snapped at her. _

_ “Excuse me?” Hailey said, standing up. Voight breaks it up, Hailey watching her partner in disbelief. She gave Jay a look that she knew he would understand and then followed Adam to the basement.  _

_ Due to Jay’s erratic and emotional behavior, Voight benched him, Hailey backing him. It was dangerous for him to be involved in something he was so close to. What he said to her in the parking lot before they left felt like a punch to the stomach, but it only further proved that he wasn’t emotionally stable enough to handle the case. The man standing in front of her wasn’t her Jay, it was a ghost of him, rightfully so. He wasn’t dealing with the loss of his father, he was using some higher morality bullshit to avenge him.  _

_ When Hailey heard Jay’s signal come through her radio she panicked. Of course he couldn’t just let them handle it. Her and Adam approached the two men on the ground, “That’s Jay, that’s Jay.” He said. _

_ Hailey signaled her radio, “5021 Henry, Officer down, officer down, I repeat officer down…” She hovered over him, ripping his shirt open. “Jay, are you okay?” She panted hard, nearly crying at the sight of his vest. She pulled it open, “It didn't go through, it didn’t go through, it’s okay. Jay, Jay? Breathe, breathe. You’re okay, you’re okay.” All that mattered was him. She didn’t care that Adam was right next to her watching her fawn all over him, she didn’t care that the offender was dead. She didn’t care if she didn’t breathe, she just needed Jay to. She cupped his cheek with her hand, leaning over him, her breathing becoming more erratic. “You’re okay, you’re okay.” _

_ After what felt like forever the ambulance arrived, she felt like she could finally breathe again. They had to pry her away from him so that they could check him out. She watched from afar as Voight attempted to rip him a new one, but as hard as he tried, Voight was just as shaken as he was angry. He almost lost  _ another  _ detective that day.  _

_ She made her way to him, sitting next to him on the edge of the ambulance. She updated him on Daniel, told him that he had been pronounced dead at MED. She told him that Jaun and Carlos were in protective custody and that bodies were already dropping in Mexico. “Hailey, um...I just couldn’t stop myself.” She didn’t know if it was an excuse or an apology, but she just smiled. She wanted to scream at him, to tell him how stupid he was and that she could have lost him, but if she did that she would give herself away, and that wasn’t an option. So instead she stood up and left, the tears falling as soon as she made it to Adam.  _

_ It felt so wrong to walk away with him, even though they were doing some sort of weird flirting thing. He pulled her into him, trying to calm her as she cried, but he couldn’t because he wasn’t Jay. But for now he would have to do. “I thought he was dead.” She confessed and followed Adam to his car, after which they drove to Molly’s where she spent the night drowning her sorrows in whiskey.  _

Vanessa looked at Hailey in shock, “How many times has Jay gotten shot?” 

“I’ve honestly lost count,” Hailey chuckles.

“Also,” Vanessa slams her hand on the counter, “You were sleeping with Ruzek?” Hailey grins sheepishly and hides her face in her hands. “While you had feelings for Halstead…?” 

Hailey groaned, “I didn’t know I have feelings for him, he was my partner, he was shot, I was scared. He would have acted the same way.” 

“Yeah, cause he’s in love with you.” Vanessa mutters under her breath and Hailey shoots her a glare, “Sorry, anyway, when did you realize you had feelings for him?”

Hailey thinks for a moment, “Part of me wants to say it was one night a few weeks after he was shot. I remember him coming over and the two of us talking about workplace relationships.” Vanessa leaned into her palm and listened intently. “Jay was here and Adam had shown up out of the blue to check on me, it had been a hard day. Jay was worried Adam would think that we were together, and for some reason that really hurt me.” Vanessa nods, “But really I think it was when Kelton was still running for Mayor and we thought intelligence was getting split up.” 

_ Hailey followed Jay into the breakroom, finding him sadly looming over the coffee pot. “Hey what’s going on?” _

_ “I have no idea,” He whispers as they both lean against the counter. “Voight just left and he said something about me running the unit.” Hailey watches him with a blank face, trying not to match the panic in his eyes.“We lost.” _

_ Hailey sighs and leans against the counter. “Kelton is who he is, the time for a reckoning’s coming.” _

_ She catches his gaze as he scoffs, “Not in time for this unit.” She holds it. “For us.”  _

_ For a moment Hailey thought her heart stopped beating, she was lost in his green orbs, their eyes locked on each other. Could he really feel the same way that she did? Did she really feel the way she thought she did? “We’ve only been partners a couple years, you’ll forget about me just fine.” _

_ He let out a burst of air, “Hailey…” He shook his head, she knew that he was going to say something, but if they couldn’t be partners anymore she didn’t want to hear it.  _

_ “We’ll be fine,” She reassured him. Their eyes stayed locked a little longer, neither of them daring to look away. Hailey could practically feel her blood pressure rising, the heat spreading to her cheeks. Jay was looking at her like he never had before and it was then that she knew it was him. It was always going to be him. _

“I don't know Vanessa, he just had this look in his eye.” Hailey went on, trying to hide her embarrassment. 

Vanessa sighed, “That’s so…”

“Stupid and completely unrealistic.” 

“I was going to say romantic…” Vanessa dragged on. She watched her roommate smile wide, the smile that was exclusively for Jay Halstead. 

“To be honest I was pissed when you joined the unit.” Hailey deadpanned. 

“Why?”

Hailey sighed, “We had just gotten back to normal after Kelton’s murder and Jay and I were working great, then Voight switched us so that I could keep an eye on you.” She smirked at her roommate that was throwing her daggers. 

Vanessa laughed along with Hailey at her confession, “When I first came in I was so scared because I thought you two were together and I had gotten you switched.” 

“Are you serious?” 

Vanessa nodded vigorously, “Yes, I caught onto all the side glances and the cheesy smiles, how he always brings you coffee.” Hailey smiled at her perceptive roommate.  _ Maybe he really does feel the same way.  _ She thought. “I knew that you loved him way before you told me at the hospital.”

Hailey rolled her eyes but internally shuddered, never wanting to relive that day again. She didn’t need to. She would remember the feeling in the pit of her stomach for the rest of her life. And she couldn’t help but think it was all her fault.

Hailey knew that Jay was struggling after Marcus’s death, and she should’ve told Voight about his close relationship with Angela the second she found out. But she let her love for him get in the way, and it almost cost him his life. 

“I should have told him Vanessa.” Hailey said, thinking back to the day that he was discharged. “But it felt like some form of divine intervention, I mean come on. His phone rang just as I was about to open my mouth.” 

Vanessa grinned, “It’s not supposed to be easy.” 

“Yeah, but it could be a little easier.” Hailey scoffed. She was right, things could be simpler. She glanced at the now wilted roses on her counter. 

_ Hailey watched from the backseat as Jay made his way back to the truck, a bouquet of red roses in his hand. “What a guy.” She teased as he slid into the driver's seat.  _

_ “Her husband came in and she told him I was a customer. Something doesn’t feel right.” Hailey watched his eyebrows knit together and her face fell. Her imagined moment was gone and they were back to work. There was no reason those flowers meant anything.  _

_ She nodded, “Yeah well, I took a picture of him and ran it through the system. Lit up the screen. Turns out our good samaritan is married to a convicted felon.”  _

_ “Let me guess, armed robbery?” Jay spit. _

_ Hailey grinned, “Told you we’re good together.” She was referencing her statement earlier in the day, when she told him they were going to be partnered again. Jay’s intense face softened and he choked out a laugh before turning his attention forward. His expression wasn’t readable and Hailey found herself worried that his half assed chuckle was an indicator for more than one terrible thing.  _

Hailey stood up and yanked the flowers from their vase, dumping them in the trash can. Vanessa stared at her like she was a mad woman. “What is wrong with you?” 

“I’m pathetic.” Hailey huffed as she threw herself onto the barstool. “I’ve had those stupid roses for weeks. He bought them out of obligation for a case!” She groaned, “I’m grasping at anything that could mean he possibly feels the same way. This is not me Vanessa.” 

Vanessa felt for Hailey, she was in a near impossible situation. She knew that Hailey loved Jay, and she was ninety-nine percent sure that Jay loved Hailey, but that wasn’t enough to force Hailey to risk everything. So instead she just pulled her into a tight hug and tried to make everything better, even for just a little while. 

**…**

Jay burst into his brother’s apartment without any warning. “I need a beer, or 12.” He said, throwing himself down on the couch next to a very surprised Will. 

“Well hello Jay, how are you? Come on in, it’s not like I had any plans or a life of my own to live.” Jay could hear the sarcasm dripping from Will’s words. 

Jay sighed, not bothered by his brother’s sass. “It’s been a rough day, okay?”

Will chuckled, “Isn’t dark and gloomy Jay usually reserved for Hailey?” Will teased as he relaxed back into the couch. 

“Usually…” Jay sighed, “Things have just been different lately.” Will cocked an eyebrow. “I don't know man, I can’t explain it.” 

Will stifled a laugh, “Good thing I can…” Jay looked at his brother with amusement twinkling in his eye. He was waiting for Will to share his oh so amazing wisdom, “Oh, I’m not telling you.”

“Wow, you are so helpful Will.” Jay sneered, stealing a beer from his fridge. 

Will sighed, “How long have you and Hailey been partners?” 

Jay shrugged, “About 3 years, why?” 

Jay thought back to the first time he ever met Hailey, it was before Erin left. They were working a case with Robbery-Homicide and she was one of the lead detectives. She walked in like she owned the place, Jay was taken aback at first, but he quickly realized that he was in the middle of a crime scene and she was just a fellow detective with pretty blonde hair. 

Her and Voight didn’t get off on the best foot, she was aggressive, claiming the scene for her unit. Jay grinned at Voight, who was clearly in shock. Most people didn’t talk to him like  _ that _ . Jay was surprised when she showed up at the district and even more surprised when in one failed swoop she managed to spill coffee on Platt, come at Voight and piss off her sergeant. She had certainly made a splash. 

“So I’d say she made quite the impression? Given the fact that you are  _ still _ partners.” Will asked, smirking. 

Jay shrugged, “Yeah, I guess so.” It was hard for Jay to think about that version of Hailey, that version of Hailey knew Erin and watched him struggle after she left. They were both so different now and Jay liked to pretend that they existed on completely different timelines. “I was partners with Erin that long, I don’t see the big deal.” 

Will smiled, Jay was playing right into his hands. “Yeah, but it’s not like you and Erin had a normal partnership.” 

“Will, if you are going to make me talk about Erin then I’m leaving.” Jay said, standing. 

“Okay, chill out. Sit down.” Will said, waving his arms around. Jay obliged, but eyed him cautiously. “I don’t want to talk about Erin. Honestly, I don’t give a shit about her. You screwed up, she left, you cried for weeks and then boom: Hailey.” Jay looked at his brother in shock, partly because he looked like he was giving a one man show. “I’m worried about the  _ boom: Hailey _ part.”

“Will, what are you talking about?” Jay asked, exasperated. 

Will sighed, “Will you just shut up and listen for five seconds?” Jay put his hands up in surrender. “Seriously if you are going to barge into my apartment and just pout, don’t barge in next time. For the love of-”

“Will!”

“Sorry,” Will said, snapping out of his rant. “Anyway, who helped you through the Erin stuff?”

“Alcohol.” Jay said, taking a swig of his beer.

“Try again.” Will said, sighing.

Jay shrugged, “I guess Camilla.” He shuddered at the name, mainly because now he realized how stupid he was then. How terrible that could have turned out for him. 

“Exactly. And who helped you deal with the Camilla situation?” Will asked. 

“Hailey.” She was there for all of it, she helped him find his way out (even if she didn’t know she was doing so), she forced him to go to therapy. Something he knows he never would have done if it wasn’t for her. She had looked out for him since the beginning, and he almost shot her for it. 

“We have a winner.”

Jay scoffed, “I don’t understand how talking about all the times I’ve screwed up is going to help me figure out why things are weird with us right now.” 

Will smirked, shaking his head at his little brother, “Trust the process, okay?” Jay nodded cautiously and Will continued. He stood up in front of the couch, paced for a moment and then pointed at Jay. “When dad died who were you a complete asswhole to?” 

Jay sighed, “Hailey…” Jay thought back to that day, he treated her like complete shit and all she was trying to do was help. He still felt bad about that. She completely trusted him, she confessed that she would follow him anywhere and the next day he attacked her. Then he was shot and he saw something in her that he never had before. He had never been able to figure out what it was. 

He vaguely remembered her ripping open his shirt after he had been shot, well, almost shot. He felt more at peace, she showed up and it felt like he could breathe easier. Then he watched her leave with Adam and it felt like a shot to the heart, and he had a pretty good idea of what that felt like. 

“Correct once again,” Will said, beginning to pace again. “Who do you spend almost every night at Molly’s drinking with?”

“Hey, it’s not every night.” Jay said, defending himself. 

“Oh, I’m sorry, you’re right. Sometimes you go to her house.” Will said, smirking for the one hundredth time that night. “So who is it? Come on, I even gave you a hint.” 

“Hailey.” Jay said matter-of-factly, it was their thing that works. The thing that he was skipping right now. Jay smiled at the thought of the first time, it was after a particularly rough case for him and Hailey insisted they get drinks. Sure it wasn’t the first time they had grabbed drinks together, but it  _ was  _ the first time that they gave it a name, and that was important to Jay for some reason. 

It was nice to have some time with her where he didn’t have to think about Adam staring at her from across the room. He never understood why the two of them bothered him so much, but after Hailey was late that one morning (of course he noticed, she was never late) he couldn’t bear to think of her and Adam as more than just his colleagues. 

Jay laughed to himself, “I owe her like four of five bottles of whiskey.” 

Will shook his head at his clueless brother, he knew he was going to have to spell it out, but he wasn’t expecting it to take  _ this  _ long. “Hailey gets kidnapped: go.”

“What?”

“Tell me what went through your head that day.”

“No!” Jay said, “What are we doing Will?”

“We’re talking about our feelings.” 

“Ew,” Jay said, mocking his brothers. “We don’t do that.”

“Well we do now!” Will declared.

“No.”

“Jay.” Will said, giving him a pointed look.

Jay rolled his eyes, “Fine.” He thought back to the day at the gun show. “I was terrified, I felt like shit, we were supposed to keep them safe and we couldn’t.  _ I  _ couldn’t. Then Adam came at me and I was seconds away from ripping his head off.”

“Good, that’s good.” Will said, “Wanting to rip Adam’s head off, that is very informative.” 

“Thank you.” Jay said, glaring at him brother. “Next question.”

“I’m not sure I’m done with this one yet.”

“We’re done. Next.”

“Okay, okay.” Will said, holding his hands up. “What was the saddest moment of the past three years, besides dad dying and you getting shot several times?”

“What kind of a question is that?” Jay snapped.

Will groaned, “Trust the process!”

Jay acted like he had to think, but he knew exactly what he was going to say. And it might even top him getting shot. “I guess it was when we thought Kelton was going to get elected and intelligence was going to get split up.” He sighed, “The thought of her not being my partner anymore was terrifying.” As much as it scared him to admit, Jay was enjoying saying these things out loud, they seemed less crazy than they did in his head. He really could imagine what he would have done if he was her partner, she had become such an important person in his life and hopefully a permanent one. 

“Jay.”

“Will?”

“Are you ready for the speed round?” 

“Does that mean it’s almost over?”

Will faked a laugh, “Haha, very funny.”

“Yeah, hit me.” 

“When you were shot, who was the first person you thought about?” Will asked.

“Hailey.”

“When you were shot, who was the first person to get to you?”

“Hailey.”

“When you got out of surgery, who was the first person you asked me to see?”

“Hailey.”

“Who never left the hospital when you were shot, despite her hating hospitals almost as much as you?”

“Hailey?” 

“Bingo.” Will said, smiling. “Are you seeing the pattern here?” 

“Yeah…” Jay said, he did and it was scaring him. His heart was beating faster and he kept thinking about every time Hailey has put herself before him, he thought about all the times that he called her first, all the times he leaned on her. He felt like his head was spinning. 

“Who brought you home from the hospital?”

“Hailey.” 

“Who did you buy flowers for like three weeks ago?”

“Hailey.” Jay said, “But that was for work.”

“Yeah, I know, but when you bought the flowers, who did you say they were for?”

Jay paused, thinking back to when he remembered Hailey was sitting in the back of his truck and he said  _ girlfriend _ . “I said they were for my girlfriend.”

“I actually didn’t know that, but this is perfect…” Will mumbled to himself. “Jay you could have said anything, you could have said your mom, your sister, a friend, a birthday present, hell you could have said boss, but you said girlfriend!”

Jay kept his eyes trained on the table, “I said girlfriend…”

“Jay, I want you to use that big, beautiful and damaged brain of yours and realize what all this means.” Will said, he pacing getting faster. Jay sat there, staring at the table. “Come on, don’t make me say it.” He said, but Jay didn’t say a thing. “Jay. Are you there?” Nothing. “Alright, I’m done. Guess what? You have feelings for Hailey!”

Little did Will know that Jay’s ears had stopped working, along with the rest of his body. He was completely frozen. He replayed every conversation, every smile, every look, every hand squeeze and shoulder touch. He thought about  _ everything.  _

Jay sat there for so long that Will was convinced that he had an aneurysm, he stared until suddenly Jay jumped out of his seat. “Holy shit.” He said, looking his smiling brother straight in the eye. “I’m in love with Hailey.” 

“Yes!” Will yelled, jumping in the yes. “Finally.” He collapsed on the couch and Jay moved to stand across from him. 

“Wait, you knew?” Jay asked, confused and honestly a little angry.

Will nodded, “Yeah, literally everyone does.” Jay's eyes widened. “Well, everyone but Hailey.” 

Jay let out a sigh of relief, “I have to go.” He said suddenly, grabbing his coat and his phone off the coffee table. “I owe you.” He said before booking it out the door.”

Will smirked, “Use protection!”

**…**

Hailey was leaning against her kitchen counter, contemplating doing the pile of dishes in the sink that her and Vanessa had avoided all week when the doorbell rang. She rolled her eyes, debating not answering, but when the noise sounded again she shuffled her way over to it, shocked at the sight of the man standing across from her.

It was Jay and he looked like he had just seen a ghost. “Hey.” She said.

“Hey,” He said smiling. “Can I come in?”

Hailey nodded, “Yeah, of course.” She took a step back to let him pass by. “What’s wrong?”

“Oh, nothing.” Jay said, taking a deep breath. “I was at Will’s and we were talking and it got me thinking…”

“Scary,” Hailey said, nervously playing with the end of her sweater. 

Jay laughed, “Yeah.” He stared at her for a second. She was still wearing what she had worn to work, but her hair was down and her normal vans were gone, instead she was wearing fuzzy socks. “Anyway, I was just thinking about how important you are to me and I-I just really wanted to tell you that.”

Hailey’s breathing picked up, she was about to agree, but Jay continued. 

“You have always been there for me and called me out on my shit, I wouldn’t be where I am now without you.” He took a breath, “I am the luckiest guy in the world that I get to call you my partner.” 

Maybe it was the amount of alcohol she had consumed, or the look in his eyes, but Hailey grew an unmatchable pair. “Is that all we are? Partners?”

Jay grinned, looking her dead in the eye, “What do you think?” 

Hailey matched his smile and hurtled herself into his arms, pulling his mouth to hers. Jay kissed her back immediately, leaning into her. Hailey arched her back and kept her hands firmly on his cheeks. Jay wrapped his arms around her waist and lifted her up, setting her on the counter. Hailey wrapped her legs around her to pull him closer, getting lost in him. After several minutes, Jay pulled away resting his forehead on hers. 

“Wow.” He said.

Hailey grinned, “Yeah.”

Jay placed his hand on her cheek, guiding her to look at him. “I love you.” He blurted out, he didn’t even realize that he had said it until he saw the look on her face. Hailey’s eyes widened and Jay panicked. “I-I am so sorry, I didn’t mean-”

“I love you.” Hailey said hectically, cutting him off. 

Jay smiled softly, “You do?”

Hailey nodded fast, “I do. I love you.” 

“Say it again.” He said, his green orbs capturing her blue ones. 

“I.” Hailey said, pressing a kiss to the corner of his mouth. “Love.” She pressed a kiss to the other side. “You.” She said, placing her hands at the base of his neck, and before she could kiss him again he covered her mouth with his. 

It quickly became heated again, Hailey stopping herself before she discarded Jay’s shirt. “We should probably go upstairs.” Hailey said, raising an eyebrow. 

Jay nodded, “Yes, yes.” He said, pulling her off the counter. “Stairs, I love stairs.” Hailey laughed, turning around at the base of them. Jay scooped down and kissed her one last time before sweeping her legs out from under her and carrying her bridal style up the stairs. 

Vanessa heard the commotion from behind her closed bedroom door, she walked to the makeshift desk in the corner and grabbed a pair of earbuds. She was in for a long night.

**Author's Note:**

> I have been working on this fic for six months and I am so excited to finally post it! It was rewritten so many times I can't tell you, but I hope you enjoyed!


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